The Real Daughter Just Wants to Pilot Mechas - Chapter 5

“Hey, do you still want this toolbox? If not, I’m taking it!” Jiang Momo called after Jiang Yuan’s back.

Jiang Yuan didn’t have the energy to reply. He waved his hand, signaling her to take it.

Resources +1.

Jiang Momo happily took the toolbox.

She knew it. Between the two of them, the one lacking brain definitely wasn’t her!

Little Eight directed the other household robots to clear the table and followed Jiang Momo back to her room.

[How did you know Jiang Yuan likes Jiang Yingying?] Little Eight asked curiously.

“I didn’t. I was bluffing. I didn’t expect he didn’t know either.” Jiang Momo flopped onto the bed, hugging a pillow and rolling around twice. “When I have money, I’m going to get a big bed.”

[Then you’ll need a bigger bedroom first,] Little Eight said as it neatly arranged her shoes.

“By the way, Little Eight, when is the enrollment for that school you mentioned earlier?”

Jiang Momo lay on the bed, hugging the pillow and tilting her head to watch Little Eight move skillfully around the room. A feeling of stability settled in her heart.

No matter what happens, as long as Little Eight is there, the sky won’t fall.

[Central Mecha Academy, in five days.]

[But there’s a threshold for enrollment. Unless you’re outstanding and get recruited directly, you’ll need Capital Star Residency to apply and there’s a 5,000-star-coin enrollment fee, tuition not included.]

“Tsk.” Jiang Momo sucked in a sharp breath. “From what Jiang Zhang just said, it sounds like it might take decades for me to get residency.”

The Jiang family clearly had no intention of helping her get it.

[I looked it up on the StarNet. Capital Star Residency is hard to get but if you’re recommended by a noble, it can be done in 24 hours.]

“Aren’t the Jiang family nobles?” Jiang Momo caught the key point.

She had heard her big brother mention ‘those old nobles’ and thought the Jiang family was at least ‘new money nobles.’

[Of course not. Only those with titles count as nobles. Besides inheritance, you can also buy a title.]

“Aren’t they the richest family?” Jiang Momo was puzzled.

If you can buy a title, why not just buy one?

[Even if you want to buy it, you need a recommendation from a grand noble. The Jiang family only recently got rich and they’ve been trying to squeeze into noble circles ever since. It looks like they’re about to succeed.]

[By the way, want to see photos of the nobles? I just hacked them from the Capital Star’s restricted system.]

“Absolutely,” Jiang Momo nodded enthusiastically.

***

The next morning, Jiang Momo was awakened by a delicious smell. She rubbed her eyes groggily. “What’s that smell?”

[The Jiang family is having breakfast.] Little Eight walked over holding a new dress.

“Another dress,” Jiang Momo muttered as she took the long dress, which wasn’t much different from yesterday’s. She complained under her breath.

She didn’t think dresses were practical, as they made big movements difficult.

[Just bear with it. It’s Jiang Yingying’s dress. At least she hasn’t worn it yet.]

[The Jiang family is being really stingy. They won’t even buy you new clothes.]

“Maybe it’s not that they’re stingy. Maybe they just genuinely don’t like me,” Jiang Momo joked.

[Are you going out now? They’re almost done eating.]

“Yup!”

Jiang Momo quickly used a cleansing beam to wash herself from head to toe, ran her fingers through her hair, and tied up her slightly face-covering bangs with the black string on her wrist.

The four members of the Jiang family were sitting around the dining table eating breakfast. Jiang’s father was still absent.

Hearing some movement from the direction of the servants’ quarters, Jiang Xian looked up.

Jiang Momo, with a little sprout of hair tied up on her head, strolled over casually, pulled out a chair in the corner, sat down, and cheerfully raised her hand. “Good morning!”

“It’s not morning anymore,” Jiang Xian set down her chopsticks. “People of the Jiang family never sleep in.”

“Wow~ really? That’s impressive,” Jiang Momo replied with a grin.

Jiang Yuan tilted his head and looked at Jiang Momo with a strange expression.

He stared for so long that Jiang Momo couldn’t ignore it even if she tried.

She turned to meet his gaze and noticed that he had changed seats. He used to sit directly across from Jiang Yingying, now he was diagonally across.

Jiang Momo asked, “Why are you sitting in the corner now?”

Jiang Yuan’s obvious change didn’t escape Jiang Yingying either. But her current position in the family was a bit awkward, so she couldn’t ask. She just stared at Jiang Yuan instead.

Seeing Jiang Momo’s knowing smile, Jiang Yuan’s face turned red. He stiffened his neck and snapped, “I’ll sit where I want. What’s it to you?”

He didn’t dare look at Jiang Yingying but Jiang Momo did. When Jiang Yuan said that, Jiang Yingying lowered her eyelids thoughtfully.

“Of course, it’s none of my business.” Jiang Momo sat up straight and realized that even after all this time, there was still no breakfast for her on the table.

She glanced at the household robots that were already clearing plates for the others and asked, “There’s no breakfast left?”

Jiang Zhang, who had been quietly sitting next to Jiang Yingying, raised his wrist to check the time and replied calmly, “It’s already past breakfast time. In the Jiang family household, you follow the Jiang family’s rules. Try getting up earlier tomorrow.”

“Rules?” Jiang Momo tilted her head.

She would’ve liked to know.

Did anyone tell her what time breakfast was?

She glanced at the time on Little Eight’s display and stared at Jiang Zhang, resting her chin on one hand with a sarcastic smile. “Our breakfast cutoff is very precise, huh? 7:48 AM.”

“The robot’s time isn’t accurate,” Jiang Zhang said expressionlessly. “It’s exactly 8:00 now.”

“Sure, whatever. I don’t have a light brain, so whatever you say goes.” Jiang Momo slouched back in her chair.

“And don’t even think about sneaking food from the kitchen’s refrigerator. From now on, it’ll be kept empty.”

Jiang Zhang got up and walked to the door, taking the coat that Jiang Yingying handed him. He patted her head before leaving.

Jiang Yingying saw him off, then paused by the dining table, and stared at Jiang Yuan for a while. Jiang Yuan didn’t dare look at her and kept eating silently.

In the end, Jiang Yingying lowered her head and left.

“The secondary card is ready. Yingying will give it to you later. From now on, we’ll deposit 3,000 a month into your account. Don’t spend it recklessly and get approval before buying anything,” Jiang Xian said as she stood up.

“I can go out now?” Jiang Momo looked up.

“No,” Jiang Xian replied. “You don’t have a light brain. You can’t open the access gates.”

“Then what’s the point of giving me money?” Jiang Momo asked.

“You can ask Yingying or Yuan to buy things for you. The money will come out of your card.”

Jiang Yuan chimed in from the side, “I can help but I’m charging double the service fee.”

“No thanks,” Jiang Momo replied.

“You see? We’ve done everything we can. Don’t go around telling people we treated you badly,” Jiang Xian said, turning to go upstairs.

Jiang Momo watched her disappear at the top of the staircase.

Jiang Yuan leaned back in his chair, glancing sideways to observe Jiang Momo’s expression. Then he clicked his tongue and waved for the robot to clear his plate.

“So many rules in the Jiang family household.”

Jiang Momo, quicker than the robot, reached out and snatched an untouched bun from Jiang Yuan’s plate and took a big bite.

She expected him to explode given his usual temper but he didn’t.

“There are rules everywhere,” Jiang Yuan said.

“Not on the desolate plate,” Jiang Momo replied with her mouth full.

“Then stay on the desolate planet. Why’d you come back?”

“The energy supply on the desolate planet comes from leftover warship reserves. It’s about to run out,” Jiang Momo said, grabbing another bun from his plate. “And wasn’t it you guys who brought me back?”

“Of course not,” Jiang Yuan retorted instinctively.

The federal government had issued a document; they had no choice.

Jiang Momo looked up.

Jiang Yuan went silent.

“You should be grateful. Do you know how expensive the rent is for these floating island villas? You couldn’t even rent a bathroom outside with a year of part-time work.”

He pushed the last steamed dumpling from his plate toward Jiang Momo and handed the empty plate to the approaching robot.

[Mr. Jiang Yuan, your delivery has arrived. Please sign for it,] a robotic voice came from the door.

Jiang Yuan quickly got up and walked out. The main gate opened and a large wooden crate, about twenty meters long, was being slowly lowered into the courtyard by an airship.

Jiang Yuan scanned the crate with his light brain.

[Delivery confirmed. Have a pleasant day.]

Jiang Yuan pressed a button on the crate and in the next second, it disintegrated into powder, revealing a humanoid mecha around fifteen meters tall standing in its place.

“Wow, let me see, let me see. This is a mecha?” Jiang Momo had been foraging for food in the kitchen while Jiang Yuan was outside, and when she looked up and saw the familiar humanoid mecha, she leaped out the window in one quick motion.

Jiang Yuan stumbled as the excited Jiang Momo bumped into him. “You…”

Jiang Yuan was about to start scolding her but he had only gotten out the word ‘you’ before Jiang Momo’s excited words caught his attention.

“This mecha isn’t any different from the ones I put together. Why did you say back then that I built it wrong?” Jiang Momo looked at him, her eyes full of curiosity.

“No different? Are you joking? This is a B-grade mecha! Even if you have the money, you might not be able to get one. I had to reserve it for two years to finally get it and it cost over a million.” Jiang Yuan stroked the mecha’s exterior fondly, looking at Jiang Momo with intense disdain.

Jiang Momo looked up again, utterly confused.

From the outside, the mecha was no different from the ones she had assembled herself. Why was Jiang Yuan so certain her mecha’s arm couldn’t be put together?

She had done it multiple times. She just couldn’t drive them, which was why they never activated.

“Can I take a look inside?” Jiang Momo asked Jiang Yuan.

Since there was no visible difference on the outside, she wanted to check the interior.

“Sure, I’ll even let you test drive it. Beg me.” Jiang Yuan raised his chin.

“Please,” Jiang Momo responded immediately.

“Ugh, you really have no pride. Whatever, guess I’m just soft-hearted.”

Jiang Yuan walked over and pressed a spot on the mecha’s ankle. The cockpit hatch opened and a ladder extended downward.

“Let’s go.” Jiang Yuan grabbed the ladder and climbed up with some effort. Once inside the cockpit, he looked down and saw Jiang Momo still standing below. Annoyed, he barked, “Didn’t you want to see it? Why are you standing around? Get up here.”

Jiang Momo wasn’t fazed by his yelling. She hiked up her dress to a suitable height, tied it off at her thighs and swiftly climbed up.

“Your outfit is so mismatched. You don’t even look like a girl, nothing like Yingying,” Jiang Yuan commented sarcastically, glancing at Jiang Momo’s dress tied around her legs.

“Alright, alright, we get it. You like Yingying,” Jiang Momo shot back reflexively, her attention completely captured by the interior of the cockpit.

Jiang Yuan went silent instantly.

“Why isn’t there a control panel?” Jiang Momo reached for the sensor helmet hanging nearby, strapped on the limb sensors, and turned to ask Jiang Yuan.

“You’re putting them on already? Wow, you’re really something,” Jiang Yuan sneered. “You really are a bumpkin, huh? Manual controls plus sensors? That’s ancient tech, completely obsolete. Everything’s full-sensor now.”

“So the reason you said my mecha couldn’t be assembled was because—?” Jiang Momo asked, shocked.

“Because B-grade mechas of this size need internal energy pathways carved into them. That janky frame you cobbled together couldn’t possibly hold a complete pathway. And even if you forced one in, it wouldn’t connect properly to the other systems. That’s why B-grade mechas are so expensive,” Jiang Yuan explained. “C-grade mechas don’t need energy pathways but they’re smaller and the arm specs don’t match.”

“Are energy pathways used to make the sensory control more precise?” Jiang Momo asked.

“Why do you want to know all this? Building mechas is insanely expensive. Our family isn’t about to pay for you to study it,” Jiang Yuan scoffed.